Strong quake strikes off eastern Indonesia, causes panic in East Timor; no tsunami threat

9/1/2013

JAKARTA, Indonesia — A strong but deep earthquake has struck off eastern Indonesia, causing panic among residents in East Timor, but there were no immediate reports of injuries or damage and there was no danger of a tsunami.

The U.S. Geological Survey says the magnitude-6.5 quake today was centered off Indonesia’s Maluku Baratdaya District, in Maluku province, at a depth of 82 miles.

The Indonesian Meteorology and Geophysics Agency says the quake has no potential to cause a tsunami.

Witnesses say that many residents in East Timor’s capital, Dili, ran out of their houses in panic after the quake struck.

Indonesia is prone to seismic upheavals due to its location on the Pacific “Ring of Fire,” an arc of volcanoes and fault lines encircling the Pacific Basin.